Author Elise McDonough presents a new cookbook that mixes classic recipes with one not-so-secret ingredient, marijuana

If Cheech & Chong ran the Food Network -- wow, meditate on that for a second -- Elise McDonough might well be on her way to be the next Paula Deen.

But, as it stands, the American public is still more tolerant of diabetes-inducing "comfort food" than recreational use of marijuana. But if that were to ever change, McDonough might be nicely positioned to become the Barefoot Contessa of cannabis cuisine.

The Santa Cruzan and longtime staffer for the magazine High Times has just released a beautifully illustrated full-color cookbook all about cooking with ganja. High Times may in fact be the only media entity that bluntly celebrates marijuana for all uses. As a result, "The Official High Times Cannabis Cookbook" does away with the solemnity common among those who tend to look at marijuana only as medicine for the ill. With its cheeky tease "More than 50 Irresistible Recipes That Will Get You High," McDonough's cookbook is clearly aimed at tokers of all stripes, medically oriented or otherwise.

"These are the best hand-picked recipes that we've been gathering at High Times for years," said McDonough of her book, which features everything from latkes for Hanukkah to samosas named in honor of President Obama, or "Obamosas" -- does the Republican Party know about this?

Until recently, marijuana's relationship with food was largely limited to the famous pot brownie -- "Classic Cannabis Brownies," page 131. But, for ancient cultures, eating marijuana was almost always the preferred way to ingest it. The psychoactive properties of the herb are also different when it is eaten, McDonough said.

"It's ingested through the liver instead of the lungs, so it's a much more potent high," she said. "And because of that, it's best to start small if you're not used to it."

Many of the recipes in McDonough's book do not call for raw marijuana per se, but for oils and butters made from marijuana leaves. "You don't really want to grind up leaves and put it in your food. There are tiny microscopic hairs on the leaves that might make it difficult to digest. It's better to infuse it with butter or oil. THC [the psychoactive chemical in marijuana] binds well with fats."

Using THC oil or "Cannabutter" or marijuana flour -- the latter credited to the Santa Cruz-based Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana -- means that your pumpkin pie or "Wake-and-Bake Eggnog French Toast" doesn't have to include tiny bits of leafy greens. The distinctive taste will, however, still come through.

"Oh, you're going to get a hint of it, no doubt," said McDonough. "Marijuana has that grassy taste to it. And that's really why cannabis brownies have been so popular. Chocolate works well in covering up the grassy taste. Peanut butter works well too." But, said McDonough, she would like to see people develop a liking for the unique taste, instead of trying to mask it.

The cookbook doesn't limit itself to deserts, though. It has holiday dishes such as a turkey marinade for Thanksgiving and chocolate-dipped strawberries for Valentine's Day. It contains robust main dishes such as bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin, tamales and gumbo. It also has various cannabis cocktails. Three recipes were designed in honor of pop culture's most famous stoners -- Lil' Snoop Hot Doggy Doggs, Willie Nelson's Cannabis Chili and Cheech &amp; Chong's "Nice Dream" Ice Cream.

"Some of these recipes have been around for a while," said McDonough. "Our Rasta Pasta was really popular on the Grateful Dead tour scene, for example."

The danger for the novice cannabis chef is, of course, dosage. McDonough counsels measuring dosage and using common sense when eating cannabis foods.

"I would like a nice piece of pie or a brownie and I want to be able to eat the entire thing and enjoy it and not have it be too strong. So it's important people for realize when they go into a dispensary, always obey the label directions and don't eat too much."